Belfast man 'critical' after ROI shooting

It is believed that it was a lone gunman who shot the victim at Hollywell Avenue in Donaghmede on Friday at around 9am.A statement from An Garda Síochána said that it is thought the gunman then left the scene on foot.The victim has been named as Declan Smith, who is in his 30s.A woman rushed out of her house when she heard the gunshot and saw the man lying on the ground."He was turned on his side," she said."There was blood all over his face. I couldn't even make out his face and [there was] a big pool of blood beside him. He wasn't really moving."Gardaí are investigating a possible dissident republican link to the gun attack.It is believed that Declan Smith has connections to murdered Real IRA boss Alan Ryan.Ryan, who was 32 and from Donaghmede, was shot dead in broad daylight by a gunman in the grounds of an apartment complex in Clongriffin in September 2012.It is understood that Smith is wanted by the PSNI investigating a double murder seven years ago, which was linked to the Continuity IRA.Three men fled across the border after the 2007 murders.The body of father-of-five Eddie Burns, 36, was found in the Bog Meadows, close to the M1 motorway in west Belfast. He had been abducted and shot dead by the gang close to the Falls Road.The second victim Joe Jones, 38, was shot in the back of the head in Ardoyne, where both men lived.The father-of-three's body was found in an alleyway off Elmfield Street.